One hundred and nine hours a week, or 16 hours a day with no days off – that’s how much a worker in Hawai‘i earning the minimum wage has to work to afford a one-bedroom rental without being considered “cost burdened.” This data, from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, is Exhibit A in the growing set of evidence regarding Hawai‘i’s high cost of living, affirming what … [Read more...] about Raising the Minimum Wage: Proceed with caution or courage?
living wage
South Maui Rep. Kaniela Ing sponsors new Hawaii minimum wage bill
The Hawaii state Legislature convenes its 2017 session on Wednesday, Jan. 18. Among the bills that will hopefully survive this term is a one from Maui Rep. Kaniela Ing, D–South Maui. That bill increases Hawaii’s minimum wage to $15/hour by 2019 and $22/hour by 2022 (the state’s current minimum wage is $9.25/hour and is supposed to rise to $10.10/hour next year). “Working … [Read more...] about South Maui Rep. Kaniela Ing sponsors new Hawaii minimum wage bill
Know Your 2016 Maui County Election Candidate: Gil Keith-Agaran
Though state Senator Gil Keith-Agaran, D–Kahului, Waihee and Wailuku, is running for reelection this year, he has no challengers. Still, he'll be on the ballot and we wanted to know his thoughts on some of what we think are the biggest state issues of the year. And he obliged. In fact, pay close attention to his answer on the question involving police misconduct (Keith-Agaran … [Read more...] about Know Your 2016 Maui County Election Candidate: Gil Keith-Agaran